Cougars open wrestling season Sunday

EDWARDSVILLE — SIUE wrestling officially opens the 2014-15 season Sunday with a quadrangular at Illinois.

The Cougars are scheduled to face host No. 13 Illinois at 2 p.m., Northern Illinois at 3:30 p.m., and Rider at 5 p.m.

“I’m excited to see where we stand as a team,” SIUE Head Coach Jeremy Spates said. “We definitely know we are better than last year based on the work in the practice room and the Red and Black Intrasquad.”

SIUE will send 14 wrestlers to the meet. Six of the 14 wrestlers will be competing in their first year of eligibility.

“I want to get everybody who is going to wrestle at least one match,” said Spates. Four weight classes have two individuals, which allows Spates flexibility in his lineup.